Like many of us, I was waiting for a company to deliver the first 100MPH/100mi bike. I almost caved on a Vectrix a few years back, but the lack of true highway speeds nixed that for me. When I saw Brammo's original announcement a few years back that they were going to build the Empulse, I went to the web site and saw you could pre-order (and no deposit required), so I quickly hit the button.

Turns out, I was #2 on the list, but the guy in front of me backed out on taking the first bike (from what I've heard), so I kind of lucked into the #1 spot.

First Impressions

The bike is really great! I put about 150 miles on it since last Friday and it doesn't disappoint. About the only complaint I had on cold weekend mornings is that the Avon tires run a little cold and they take a while to warm up.

Suspension is firm. It feels much more like a sport bike - you'll feel the big bumps on the highway, but in the twisty sections the feedback is great. I haven't played with the settings yet, but I'll probably mess with preload and the damping a bit.

With a mix of back roads, running errands, and trying out various public chargers I've had plenty of range and never had to "plan" for a charging stop. Brammo includes a 110v Clipper Creek charger, but I've charged it on the following 240v chargers and it works great: Chevy Voltec, Clipper Creek (public), and Chargepoint (public).

The Empulse has both "Normal" and "Sport" modes that you can switch between, and they recommended leaving it in "Normal" for the first 100 miles. I'm going to play with "Sport" some more, but "Normal" has been great for most riding around.

Range

Doing sustained 80MPH seems to drop you into the 50-60mi range, but doing a mix of riding (highways and back roads) is easily seeing 75-80mi of range. This is not actively trying to "baby" the throttle to max the range either, I'm just riding the way I'd ride any motorcycle.

Side note:

The general public is oblivious to the fact that the bike is electric. I've occasionally had a double-take from people when I pull up to a stop light and someone realizes there's no engine noise. The downside is that when you're trying to pull out of a parking space, people will walk right in front of you at any time since they assume the engine is off. Usually people hear a motorcycle engine and they pause waiting for you to pull away - something to keep and eye on.

I'll try to get some more photos together and some helmet cam video pulled together in the next couple days too.

Congratulations on getting your new Empulse R, Ain. You will probably find that the suspension loosens up a little as your bike gets more miles on it. I have found that it typically takes about 1000 miles for motorcycle suspensions to "break-in". By then it will likely be more supple.

Welcome to the forum, Ain! And thanks for sharing your riding impressions.

Be prepared for a barrage of questions from your fellow "waiters" who very much intend to be "riders".

Here's a few for starters:

As part of the ordering process, were you asked your weight so the correct springs could be chosen for the shocks? I live and work (from my bike) in San Francisco and am very much interested in shocks that can soak up some of our terrible street nightmares. I had some Wilburs on a R1200R that were solid in the twisties AND just lovely over rapid quick harsh surfaces. I would like to duplicate that experience on the Empulse.

Please clarify, if you can, the reasoning behind keeping the bike in "Normal" mode initially. Is that so YOU can break in to the bike? Ease the batteries into their cycles? Baby the new bearings in the motor? This just doesn't make obvious sense to me.

When I got to test ride the Empulse R, I and others noted the drive train lash when transitioning from throttle to regen. Don said the software update fixed that. What's your experience in that area with your bike? Smooth enough?

The latest Motorcycle.com review video mentioned a "kind of clunky" tranny. Although I've experienced balky gearboxes that loosen up with break in (and synthetic oil), I'd like to hear your impression.

Any experience to give us a good estimate of the range at a constant 65 mph on the freeways?

Did you get any sense about the flow of future bikes into Scuderia West?

Any word on an ETA for the side and top cases? Windshield?

Do you have any idea of the wattage limit of the 12V accessory port?

Wow, a lot of questions! Thanks in advance for any light you can shed. And ENJOY!

The downside is that when you're trying to pull out of a parking space, people will walk right in front of you at any time since they assume the engine is off. Usually people hear a motorcycle engine and they pause waiting for you to pull away - something to keep and eye on.

You'll just have to get into the habit of yelling "Uddn uddn" as you start up!

The problem with the horn is that it's a bit rude. It's like yelling "Get Out Of The Way!" Perhaps I'll install a bicycle bell on my Empulse -- it's a lot more cheerful than a horn. Ideally, the horn would have two settings. The regular sound and a much more quiet sound that says "Please excuse me..."

Yes, upon startup, the Empulse's presence is pretty much like a bicycle, a BIG bicycle. I've ridden bicycles in city traffic for many years and all my bikes had a bell plus an air horn. "Excuse me" and "Get the F**& Out of the Way, NOW" kind of tones.

Maybe the most practical choice is to just say, "Excuse me: I'd like to exit this parking place." to the pedestrian blocking your way.

But, as a farkel addict, a nice brass bicycle bell certainly attracts me. Now, all I need is an Empulse on which to mount it.

Voltec charger.. do you have a Volt as well? Do you have to fight for access to the charger at home, or do you have two? : ) (I guess for overnight charging 110v is fine)

Do you happen to know the gear ratios for the transmission?

Yes - I took advantage of the 0 down/0% deals they were doing on the Volt over the summer (not to mention $7500 Fed tax credit, and $1500 CA state rebate). Too hard to pass up...

The Voltec charger that SPX sells is a pretty good deal since it's $495 for a 240v 3.3kW charger, and it will work equally well with the car or the Empulse.

The owners manual doesn't have specs on the transmission, but I think they changed the sprockets from what's on the web site... The site specs list 14/48 for the sprockets, but the rear one on my bike has "38" stamped on it.

The transmission ratios are pretty close, but for most riding in the 30-50MPH range (e.g. back roads), you almost never need to leave 2nd gear. The higher gears are really only useful at highway speeds to keep the engine in the 4000-6000 "sweet spot".

Voltec charger.. do you have a Volt as well? Do you have to fight for access to the charger at home, or do you have two? : ) (I guess for overnight charging 110v is fine)

Do you happen to know the gear ratios for the transmission?

Yes - I took advantage of the 0 down/0% deals they were doing on the Volt over the summer (not to mention $7500 Fed tax credit, and $1500 CA state rebate). Too hard to pass up...

The Voltec charger that SPX sells is a pretty good deal since it's $495 for a 240v 3.3kW charger, and it will work equally well with the car or the Empulse.

The owners manual doesn't have specs on the transmission, but I think they changed the sprockets from what's on the web site... The site specs list 14/48 for the sprockets, but the rear one on my bike has "38" stamped on it.

The transmission ratios are pretty close, but for most riding in the 30-50MPH range (e.g. back roads), you almost never need to leave 2nd gear. The higher gears are really only useful at highway speeds to keep the engine in the 4000-6000 "sweet spot".

- Ain

Same here with the Volt, 0% financing is such a beautiful thing! Again, congrats on your Empulse purchase Ain!

BTW I will be using ONE 120v plug to charge both the Volt and the Empulse... I dont foresee an issue with that.